Uriah's Story
by fazzr4
Summary: Divergent from Uriah's point of view - see the story from a different angle and get to know more about a less prominent character.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N Hi this is my first fanfic and I would love if anybody took the time to read it. I will try and update as often as possible and will welcome any reviews as I would love to know if someone likes my writing or if they think something could make it better – fazzr4**_

Pulsing neon lights flicker around the dark room, bouncing off of the mass of bodies jumping in the middle. The fast-tempo music is blaring away in time with my wild heartbeat and I sway on the spot in time to it. Suddenly, I get the sense that someone is trying to sneaking up on me. At the last second, I whip around to find Lynn behind me, poised to jump and tackle me to the ground. Seeing her more-annoyed-than-usual look mixed with surprise I burst out laughing and pat her arm consolingly.

"There there Lynn, you still have a lot to learn about the art of sneaking up on people."

The look she gives me is so angry that I can't help myself from laughing again.

"Hey guys what's happening?" asks Marlene who is looking at Lynn in confusion because of the death glare she is giving me.

"I was just imparting some of my immense wisdom onto our friend here." I say, earning an elbow in the ribs.

"Hey, no fair!" I yelp, pretending to be hurt although Lynn's elbows are actually quite sharp. "It's my birthday remember?"

"Well apparently that doesn't stop you from being a -" Lynn starts but Marlene cuts her off by saying:

"Oh yeah, that's what I came over for." She rummages in her pocket bringing out a small, black box. "Happy 16th Uri!"

I open it carefully, a small smile on my lips and instantly pull Marlene into a rib crushing hug as I see what's inside. Releasing her I take out the gold watch that was nestled into the box. It fits perfectly into the palm of my hand, it's chain looping round my fingers. I tilt it slightly and my heart skips when I see a Dauntless flame etched into the top surrounding cursive writing spelling out my name.

"It's perfect Mar. Thank you!" I say, smiling as tears threaten to spill over my eyes.

"You're very welcome," she replies, grinning widely enough to show her slightly crooked teeth. "I hoped you would like it."

I stare into her deep green eyes a moment; lost in thought. Lynn taps me on the shoulder though and I turn to look as my brother grabs a microphone and hops onto the bar.

"Alright, shut up everybody!" he yells and apart from a few murmurs of complaint the room goes silent.

"I just wanted to say happy birthday to my little brother and congratulations because in a couple of weeks he is going to become truly Dauntless!" At this last word the whole room erupts into yelling and feet-stomping and Zeke runs over to me and tousles my hair so I jab him in the ribs, laughing.

"Bring on the Dauntless cake!" I shout over the noise and as one, the people in the room turn and run towards a massive chocolate cake on a table in the far corner but Zeke holds me back.

"Dad would be proud," he says, his voice low. "You will make a great Dauntless."

I smile at him and he runs off to join the cake-frenzy but I falter. For everyone else it is easy, they all know exactly who they would be if they were stripped down to their cores. I, however must wait for the aptitude test to decide my fate. To tell me whether I am Dauntless or not.


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N I decided to do another short chapter because I got my first review which was nice :) I hope you like this one! (Btw I won't post this often normally)**_

"Last one there's a pansycake!" I yell, sprinting off into the maze of dark stone corridors with a stunned Zeke and Four right on my heels. My legs burn as I skid round the corner and carry on to the location of the dare – willing myself to go faster. When I see the families of transfers on Visiting Day, it always seems strange to me how they are amazed at everything they see here but everything is familiar to me – the sound of rushing water from the Chasm, the clamour of hundreds of different voices, the soft blue light that fills the hallways, the mouthwatering smell of Dauntless cake, and, so faint that I can't hear it sometimes, the sound of the train whistle, calling every Dauntless to a test of bravery. A 'Thud' snaps me out of my thoughts and I slow down to look round at Zeke who has evidently fallen over his shoelaces. Laughing hysterically, I jog back to him and grasp his forearm to pull him up. He nods at me with a slightly sheepish expression on his face which makes me laugh even harder until I see a blur go past us. Four! I set off again, abandoning Zeke, determined not to lose at my own game. Pride is in every Dauntless heart and it reassures me to know that it is in mine.

Panting, I come to a skidding stop at a doorway covered by strings of hanging beads and look round for Four. I scowl when I see him push himself away from the wall where he was leaning and he smirks at me.

"What took you so long?" he says and I am slightly annoyed at myself for not coming first but I can feel the smile tugging at the edge of my mouth.

Finally Zeke arrives behind us, panting and limping slightly.

"Come on slowpoke, I wanna see this." says Four, holding aside the strings of beads and walking in.

"Who's a pansycake?" I say tauntingly.

"Me, ok? Now get your scrawny ass in there and complete your dare." Zeke says whilst shoving me into the warmth of the tattoo parlour.

Stumbling slightly, I regain my balance and skim my hand along the decorated wall as I walk, looking for a tattoo that I like. The dare was that I could choose a tattoo but Zeke and Four would choose where it was. My eyes scan the choices but nothing appears to me. I wander over to where Four is talking with Tori and I see her nodding, a smile on her face. He must be telling her about the dare.

"Uriah," she smiles. "I have a new design I think you will like."

Tori hands me a drawing showing an intricate snake that coils at the tail with with diamond patterns running down it.

"It's perfect." I grin. "Zeke! I found one!"

He walks over, looks at it and nods.

"Now, where to put it…" he fake-wonders teasingly.

"Hmm…" Four chimes in.

"Behind his ear would be _painful_. D'you think he's Dauntless enough?" Zeke turns to Four.

"I'm not sure." Four replies.

"Oh shut up." I say, punching him in the arm. "This snake behind my ear, please." I tell Tori.

The next few hours are agony but I bite my lip and listen to Four and Zeke's teasing the whole time. They both seem impressed though that I don't so much as wince.

When it's finished, Zeke claps a hand on my back.

"Well done little bro. Now go get some sleep before the aptitude test tomorrow."

His easy smile fills me with guilt and I spend the night tossing and turning. He may not have any doubts but I do.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N I'm really sorry about the wait I have been extremely busy and also without WiFi but I hope you like this chapter – it was gonna be longer but I haven't had time sorry.

I stand at the top of the Hancock Building; the first few rays of light are streaming over the city, turning the sky a soft pink colour. The biting wind snaps at me and I shiver. From here I can see the Abnegation sector with its rows of small, neat houses, Candor headquarters, imposing and bleak and Erudite, harsh metal and glass reflecting off the wide expanse of the marsh. In the distance, past the snaking train tracks, is the Pire. Emotions and thoughts rush through me as I look at it, memories so faint I didn't know I had them till now flood my mind and I can feel a longing tugging me towards Dauntless. Towards my home. Smiling, I glance up to see a flock of crows heading towards the fence and follow their flight path as they twist and turn through the sky. They bring my eyes down to the rolling green farmland of Amity that I have only ever seen up close once.

Flashback

Zeke hops off the train with me on his shoulders squealing and giggling.

"Oof," he groans. "I think you might be getting a bit big for that now Uri."

I jump off his shoulders and roll onto the grass.

"Never!" I stomp my foot. "Anyway, I'm only seven."

Running circles around my mom, I drag her by the hand towards where we will spend the day picnicking among the Amity orchards. The sharp, clean smell of greenery fills my nose with the underlying sweetness of rotten apples that have fallen from the trees which create an archway for us to walk under. Dappled sunlight falls through the branches onto my dark skin.

After not much longer walking along the dusty track that will take us to the compound, we find an Amity truck parked up, the back filled with crates of apples. A man dressed in a red cotton shirt and light brown trousers nods at us in greeting, obviously straining under the weight of the large crate he is holding. Almost in slow motion, his right hand slips and the apples come tumbling out, hitting the ground and rolling away.

Yanking my hand from my mom's grip, I sprint forward as fast as my small legs can go and fall to my knees on the grass next to the stranger, who is hurriedly grabbing apples from the dirt. I scramble around picking up as many apples as I can hold and drop them in the crate as the man lifts his head to look at me. Confusion flits across his face for a second as he takes in my dark clothes but he smiles at me gratefully and we carry on until all the fruit is in the truck.

"Thank you," he says, his voice low and soothing. "That was very kind of you."

I hear a light cough and turn to see Mom and Zeke standing behind me.

"Please, take some apples for your kindness." He smiles at me and gently presses three apples into my small hands and I grin back at him.

"Come on Uriah, we need to go." Mom says, gently but firmly.

I hand her the apples and begin to pelt down the track with Zeke coming behind me and hauling me over his shoulder.

End of Flashback

Sighing, I climb down the rickety ladder and step into an elevator. After pressing the down button, I lean my head against the closed doors and watch my breath misting on the cold metal.

"Uriah Pedrad."

The sound of my name breaks me out of my haze and I shakily stand, plastering a fake smile on as I file behind two blonde Abnegation girls who look almost exactly the same to me, except that one of them is shaking so much she has to grip the hem of her gray shirt.

We all stand in front of the wooden doors and push them open when we hear the shrill buzzer.

I walk into a room covered wall to wall with mirrors and I am shocked to see a reclining chair like one of the ones they use in sims. An Abnegation woman with straight brown hair is fiddling with wires and electrodes and she gestures for me to sit. Slowly I lower myself into the chair and lean my head back.

"My name is Erin and I will be administering your aptitude test today," she says while handing me a shot glass of blue liquid. "Drink this please."

I raise my eyebrow quizzically, looking at the liquid and then at Erin, who has electrodes attached to her temples. "Is there anything I should know?" I ask tentatively.

"Nothing bad will happen," she says reassuringly. "There's nothing to worry about."

I nod and tip the glass back.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N Sorry that it's been a while but I've had a bit of a writers block and have also been very busy recently so I haven't had enough time to write anything that I thought was good enough until now but I will try and update at least once a fortnight and try to make them a lot longer. It would be wonderful if I got any reviews/follows as they really motivate me to keep writing. I know this is late but thank you Tyler02e your review made me so happy.

"Uriah Pedrad."

The sound of my name breaks me out of my haze and I shakily stand, plastering a fake smile on as I file behind two blonde Abnegation girls who look almost exactly the same to me, except that one of them is shaking so much she has to grip the hem of her gray shirt.

We all stand in front of the wooden doors and push them open when we hear the shrill buzzer.

I walk into a room covered wall to wall with mirrors and I am shocked to see a reclining chair like one of the ones they use in sims. An Abnegation woman with straight brown hair is fiddling with wires and electrodes and she gestures for me to sit. Slowly I lower myself into the chair and lean my head back against the cool metal.

"My name is Erin and I will be administering your aptitude test today," she says while handing me a shot glass of blue liquid. "Drink this please."

I raise my eyebrow quizzically, looking at the liquid and then at Erin, who has electrodes attached to her temples. "Is there anything I should know?" I ask tentatively.

"Nothing bad will happen," she says reassuringly. "There's nothing to worry about."

I nod and tip the glass back.

I am in the empty school cafeteria and in front of me are two bowls, one has a long machete in, the other, a hunk of cheese.

"Choose." A cold voice behind me whispers in my ear. I whip around, ready to defend myself but nobody is there.

Sweat begins to collect on my palms as my eyes sweep across the room from one bowl to the other. What am I supposed to do?

Taking a gulp of air, I hesitantly ask the bodiless, detached voice, "What am I going to do with them?"

"Just choose!" It screams. I try to pick up both but it is as if there is a brick wall stopping my hands so without thinking, I grab the cheese and sign in relief when the bowls disappear. Without warning, a low growl starts to resonate from behind me and a stench of rot and blood fills my senses. A huge dog stands behind me with it's razor sharp teeth bared and it's muscles coiled, ready to tear me to shreds. Immediately, I scan the room for a weapon but there are just the tables and benches and I am not strong enough to use either of them. Instead, I leap towards the window while ripping a piece off of the hem of my shirt. I wrap the fabric around my fist and punch the glass, willing it to break. It shatters outwards and I grab one of the larger, jagged pieces with my aching hand and balance myself on the balls of my feet as the dog prowls closer.

Taking my chance, I leap forward and attempt to slash the dog on it's neck but I only graze it's side. My body slams into the ground, knocking the air out of me but again I stand. A wail of pain comes from the dog and blood drips from it's side. It backs away from me, and I feel guilt rising in my stomach so I take a couple paces back and almost trip on the cheese. I had completely forgotten about it in my rush to find a weapon. _Stupid_. Picking it up, I slowly walk to where the dog is cowering and raise a hand out to give it the food.

Erin stands above me with a panicked expression.

"Quick, we don't have much time," she says.

"Wait, what was my result?" I ask, confused. She sighs.

"Your results, they were inconclusive – I would guess from your actions in the test that you are an even blend of Dauntless and Amity." She edges closer. "You must never tell anyone your results. Your life depends on it. I will delete the footage but you should know that picking Dauntless will most likely get you killed however it is still your choice to make. Some people have survived."

She starts to push me towards the door and out of my stupor. There are millions of questions speeding through my mind right now but I can only form one into a coherent thought before she opens the door.

"Who have survived?"

Erin pauses and looks me straight in the eye.

"Divergents."


End file.
